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On April 2nd, hundreds of New Yorkers gathered in the Meatpacking District, of all places, for the start of the 10th Annual Veggie Pride Parade. “We made it ten years; I don’t know how!” joked Pamela Rice, who produces the parade and post-parade exposition in Union Square.

Pamela Rice, organizer of Veggie Pride Parade

While some onlookers laughed condescendingly at the participants, the vast majority laughed with them, remarking on the creative fruit and vegetable costumes and good energy that filled the streets of Greenwich Village. TheirTurn spoke to many people along the parade route to get their reaction:

Several people told us that they would read the pamphlets and consider making changes to their diets, but we suspect that’s not the case for the man caught on camera saying, “Bro. I guarantee this was commissioned by Monsanto.”

A giant pea pod asks onlookers to “Give Peas a Chance.”

The cure to many of our diseases and ailments is right under our nose, but the institutions that should be sharing this information are paid by corporations to ensure that we don’t get it. This moral crime is uncovered in an explosive new documentary film called What The Health, which will be available for streaming on Thursday, March 16th.

On March 7th, hundreds of New Yorkers attended the world premiere of What The Health. Co-directors  Kip Andersen and Keegan Kuhn held a Q&A after the screening.

Co-director Keegan Kuhn, Nutritionist Dr. Ruby Lathon & Co-director Kip Andersen at the world premiere of What The Health in NYC (Photo by Lukas Maverick Greyson)

Among the many shocking revelations in the film is that charities like the American Cancer Society and American Heart Association, organizations that should working to improve public health, are withholding life-saving information and promoting a harmful diet in order to curry favor with their corporate donors. “When I was healed, I couldn’t keep quiet,” said Dr. Ruby Lathon, a Certified Holistic Nutritionist who is featured in the film. “I couldn’t believe that there’s a secret out here that you can heal with food.”

Natasha Brenner, a NYC-based animal rights activist, turned 95 on December 16th, and, apart from a few aches and pains, she is a picture of health. Ms. Brenner, a vegetarian since 1992 and vegan since 2012, attributes her longevity to meditation and her plant-based diet. “It was very hard to give up cheese, but my consciousness was raised. It’s just very satisfying to know that you’re not hurting, killing or injuring an animal.”

During her career, Ms. Brenner worked in copy editing, public relations and real estate investing. In recent years, however, she has dedicated herself exclusively to animal rights. Over the past decade, Ms. Brenner and her husband Noah, who died in 2014, participated in weekly protests and rallies to ban horse-drawn carriages from the streets of midtown Manhattan.

Natasha Brenner educates tourists about the cruelty of NYC’s horse-drawn carriage trade.

While her participation in the street protests has declined in the past two years, she continues to be advocate online. “I’m on the computer every day doing animal actions and petitions.”

Animal rights activist Natasha Brenner turns 95

While Brenner admits that she is “amazed” that she is “still here,” her friends and family are not at all surprised. “She’s as sharp today as the day I met her five years ago,” said Mickey Kramer, a friend of Brenner, who is a mere 48 years younger. “And you should see her play ping pong… amazing.”

Animal rights activist Natasha Brenner celebrates her 95th birthday with friends and family

When asked what she wants for her birthday, Brenner took a bite of her mango chick’n and said, “for all animals to be treated with respect and kindness.” And, without missing a beat, she added, “and to be six inches taller.”

On May 7th and 8th, thousands of people stood in line to enter the explosively popular NYC VegFest. And, according to the many attendees TheirTurn spoke to, it was well worth the wait.

For more information about the event, including vendors and speakers, please visit NYC Veg Food Fest.

Thousands of people line up to enter the NYC Veg Food Fest.

Some participants marched in fruit and vegetable costumes; others carried posters promoting animal liberation. But their messages to the public were consistent: “Animals are not food.”

On April 3rd, animal advocates took to the streets of Greenwich Village for the 9th annual Veggie Pride Parade, attempting to awaken their fellow New Yorkers to the plight of animals exploited for food and the health and environmental benefits of a plant-based diet. Curious onlookers fumbled for their smart phones to document the unique and unexpected parade and to take selfies with a giant pea pod.

Racial, ethnic and socio-economic diversity at the Veggie Pride parade.

The parade began in the “Meatpacking District,” a neighborhood that was once dominated by commercial butcher shops. Today, those businesses, which have been priced out of the trendy neighborhood, have been replaced by restaurants that, of course, serve meat (for now).

Parade onlooker wearing Canada Goose fur coat expressed excitement about seeing the parade.

When the parade spilled into Union Square, where it ended, organizer Pamela Rice staged a spirited rally, and parade participants indulged in vegan fare sold by local restaurants and food companies.

Veggie Pride Parade Organizer Pamela Rice